Into the Inferno (2016)

	Also Known As: -
	Year of first release: 2016
	Director: Werner Herzog (Lo and Behold - Reveries of the Connected World, Aguirre the Wrath of Gods, Nosferatu the Vampyre, Fitzcarraldo)
	Actors: Werner Herzog, Clive Oppenheimer, Katia Krafft
	Country: GB, D, CDN
	Genre: Documentary
	Conditions of visioning: 23.04.2017, VOD, 10" tablet screen.
Synopsis: A tour of some of the most impressive volcanoes in the world, and the impact they have on people.
Review: I have recently learned by watching Lo and Behold - Reveries of the Connected World that cult director Werner Herzog is nowadays more into directing documentaries than the movies we know him the most for, like Aguirre the Wrath of Gods, Nosferatu the Vampyre or Fitzcarraldo. He does so with a different approach than the one of other documentarists who have more tendency to stick to facts, while Herzog is apparently more trying to make you feel the Documentary. This approach brings some interesting elements but can leave you unsatisfied. Another characteristic is that although there is a storyline, the director doesn't hesitate to divert from it if he sees something more interesting to show. The consequence is that I was expecting more myths and information about volcanoes throughout the ages and I was left with only three of them (OK the one in Antarctica is impressive) and much more time spent on the characters whose life is influenced by volcanoes: a volcanologist here, a tribe there. That was in fact the original purpose of the Documentary, but I found that the camera was spending far too much time on some characters without bringing any information, just a vague feeling. Another example is the sequence taking place in North Korea, which uses the pretense of the legendary Volcano from which the Korean people were born to start an analysis on the politics of the country... Like I wrote about Lo and Behold, an original approach that brings awards to the movie, but not really what I was looking for.
Rating: 4 /10